They acquired Quinton de Kock for a base price of INR 1 crore.
Mumbai Indians went into the IPL 2026 auction with the lowest purse but got what they wanted. It would be interesting to see what the MI best XI would look like following the mini auction.
Five-time champions had only INR 2.75 crore in the mini auction. Having done most of their work through retentions and trades, Mumbai Indians did not have too many requirements. One of their main targets was to get another backup wicket-keeper to Ryan Rickelton. They didn’t need to try hard as they snapped Quinton de Kock for a base price of INR 1 crore.
Having acquired him, they now face a tricky choice between the two South African keepers for the MI best XI.
Mumbai Indians have historically shown loyalty towards their players. They like to have familiar faces in their squad and this is just another example of it. Quinton de Kock had not registered for the IPL 2026 auction initially but the franchise asked him to do so, and at a lower base price due to their budget. The Proteas star obliged and was picked without any roadblocks.
However, Ryan Rickelton is the incumbent opening wicket-keeper batter for MI. He is also a key member of their sister franchise MI Cape Town in the SA20. De Kock was part of the title-winning campaigns for MI back in 2019 & 2020. So it is not as straightforward a choice.
Speaking about their game, Rickelton is known as a clone of de Kock as the two batters have almost the same playing style. Most of their shots look like a carbon copy of each other. They also have pretty much the same weaknesses against new-ball movement and spin.
De Kock had a couple of awful years since retiring from international cricket. In the same period, Rickelton found his peak. But that seems to be over as he has struggled to buy runs in recent times.
Rickelton-ன் bat-ல இருந்து பறந்திருக்கு Rocket! 🚀🤩👌🏼
— Star Sports Tamil (@StarSportsTamil) April 20, 2025
📺 தொடர்ந்து காணுங்கள் | Tata IPL 2025 | MI vs CSK | Star Sports தமிழில்#IPLOnJioStar #IPL2025 #TATAIPL #IPLRevengeWeek #MIvCSK pic.twitter.com/VlgD8UzDZ0
Since June, Rickelton has scored 118 runs from five T20 games at an average of 23 and strike rate of 132. In the same period, de Kock has made 703 runs at an average of 25 while striking at 137. Neither of them have really stood out, which makes this a big headache for the team. But de Kock has recently smashed 90 off 46 against India, giving him an edge over Rickelton.
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The Mumbai Indians team management believes Rohit Sharma and Quinton de Kock have good chemistry as the opening pair. There is evidence for it as the duo has amassed over 1200 runs during 2019-21 at an average of 34.
One of the other three overseas spots in the MI best XI will go to Trent Boult, who forms a lethal pace combination alongside Jasprit Bumrah. For the primary spinner, they have to choose between Mitch Santner and AM Ghazanfar. Santner has the experience and offers value with the bat, which gives him an advantage.
The last spot is perhaps the most difficult as Mumbai Indians will need to pick between Will Jacks, Corbin Bosch, and Sherfane Rutherford. Jacks offers part-time off-spin but isn’t a good fit in the middle order. Rutherford is the best option for that role as someone who can support Hardik Pandya and Naman Dhir well.
Looking at their resources, here’s how the MI best XI looks:
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